Workers put final touches on water tank in Summit

Erik Holladay / Jackson Citizen PatriotGwyn Halworson of Neuman Company Contractors Inc. works in the water tower.

While some area workers spent their Tuesday working at a desk, Mark Maug spent his day on top of the new 167-foot-tall water tower in Summit Township.

It's a pretty good gig  if you're not afraid of heights.

Maug and two other workers from Black River Falls, Wis., are painting the million-gallon tank on the east side of M-60 near McCain Road.

The workers are from Neuman Co. of Romeoville, Ill.

"I've seen hundreds of water towers," said Maug, who has been working for the company for 17 years. "You get used to working on them."

Erik Holladay / Jackson Citizen PatriotA pair of workers prime the new water tower on the east side of M-60 near McCain Road for painting.

Gwyn Halvorson, field supervisor on the project, said he and his crew started painting and sandblasting the inside of the tower July 7. They are now painting the exterior.

"I don't mind being high up in the air. You get used to being up there," said Halvorson, who has been with Neuman for 37 years. "To me it's just like driving a semitruck down the road."

Workers have been applying green primer and covering it with white paint. The tower ultimately will have the township logo on it along with orange stripes required by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Rick Faling, superintendent for Summit's Department of Public Works, said construction of the $2.36 million project is done; as soon as painting is completed, the tower will go online.

The tank is expected to be in service Oct. 1, but Faling said weather conditions will be the determining factor on whether the painting will be completed in time.

The need for the tower arose a couple of years ago when the state's Department of Environmental Quality determined that Summit lacked enough reserve water.

The height of a water tower, coupled with the massive amounts of water contained therein, create water pressure, according to HowStuffWorks.com.

The water that comes from a tap usually starts off in a reservoir, travels to a treatment plant, and then is pumped into the water system. Any extra water that isn't needed travels up into the water tower.

Water towers don't hold all of a town's water; they generally hold just a day's worth.

Township Supervisor Jim Dunn said the new tower will bring the township into compliance with state requirements for peak-storage. Summit has four water towers now, including one at Jackson Community College.

Dunn said the DEQ recommends a 33 percent reserve based on a maximum-demand day. Dunn said the township was at about 25 percent without the new tower.

Once the tower goes online, Dunn said, the township will have a reserve of about 35 percent.

The project is financed through the state's Drinking Water Revolving Fund at
2.125 percent interest for 20 years.

Dunn said township officials will perform a cost analysis next year to determine if water rates need to be raised to help cover the cost.